About William Oldham

Oldhams were on this side of the water as early as 1621. Mary Oldham, as a young maiden came over from England on the Fortune in Nov. 1621.

John Oldham of Plymouth, New England, came to Plymouth in 1623, and was murdered in his Shallop, in Narragansett Bay, off the coast of Block Island in1636."

"It is believed that all persons in the colonies prior to the Revolution who bore the name, were of kin, save such as may have acquired the name by adoption.

The family is of an heroric race, old Saxon, as the name implies "Aldholm, literally "Oldhome." The Ald was translated "Old" which was correct, while "holm" for "home" was translated "ham", an old English law term, from which "hamlet" is derived, according to some philogogers.

The name came into England with the Saxons more than fourteen hundred years ago, and to this county in 1623, when Captain John Oldham came to the shores of Connecticut.

Mr. Patterson, Professor of Philosophy and President of the State Agricultural College at Lexington, KY, a philogist, gave the meaning of the name Oldham as Anglo Saxon, and means "Oldhome", the Anglo Saxon for home; being "hame", the "e" was dropped in the course of time.

The name "Oldham" comes from the Saxon words "Eald," signifying oldness and antiquity, anf "Ham," meaning house, farm, or hamlet. It is also known as a derivitive of Aldehulme, an old Norse anme. The name is understood to date from 865 AD, when Danish invaders established a settlement called "Aldehulme."

During the Middle Ages, Oldham was recorded as a territory under the control of minor ruling families and barons. In the 13th century, Oldham was documented as a manor held from the Crown by a family surnamed Oldham, whose seat was at Werneth Hall. During the reign of Henry III, Alwardus de Aldholme is referred to as holding the land of Vernet (Werneth). The territory of Oldham was ruled by Alwardus's family from Werneth Hall, which still stands just north of Werneth.

William and his son Thomas died of the plague on the same day. Left behind was Thomas's 2 remaining children, John and Thomas, who were sent to Plymouth colony to live with their uncle, John (Mad Jack) Oldham. Upon his murder by the Indians they then went to live with their aunt Lucretia, who was the wife of Jonathon Brewster son of Mayflower passenger.